flea prevention for indoor-cats

Both of my cats are strickly indoor. The only time that they would go out would be visiting the vet or boarding at the kennel. They have been on Program in the past year, while they were still the single cat in the house. Now they are living in the same house, and I wonder whether my flea prevention regime would be enough. Should I switch to topical applications like Advantage or Frontline?? I have not yet seen any flea on either of them though.

Another question is: Do I HAVE TO get flea medication from my vet if I have decided to change the medication??? The price over at Petguys.com is just amazing.

Thanks. Jean

Anywhere you can get a bargain is great! I like Program as it also inhibits ringworm in cats, but I use Revolution as well. Revolution helps prevent fleas, earmites, heart worms, and other nasties.

All my kitties are indoor only, but, the kids brought a puppy into the house and it was LOADED with fleas. Fleas can also be picked up at the vets, from the yard, and just from you petting an animal for a second.

Personally, I would never put flea medication on my cat unless I was sure she had fleas

You are lucky to have only one cat. If I only had one I too would wait until it had fleas. I have 16 cats/kittens in my home and only one is not a Persian. With so much fur it is hard to determine if there are fleas until they become a horrendous problem. I had to spend 3 months fighting fleas with baths and drops, as well as daily vacuuming. They have finnaly gone away.
As the fleas came from outside they could have brought tape worms into my group. Luckily the fecal tests were negative.

I can see how having multiple cats could be a problem.

I buy the dog size advantage mulitpacks and use that on my cats. I use this breakdown:

http://www.lisaviolet.com/cathouse/advantage.html


This has served me well, and with my cats both inside and out I have very little fleas to contend with. Plus no tapes to deal with as well.

hello all, thanks for the input. While I was waiting for your inputs, I also made a phone call to my vet's office. I was informed that, while Program is used as a "birth-control pill for fleas" (those are the exact words from my vet, and I find it amusing... ), I should also use Advantage or other topical medication for GuaiGuai and MowMow during the summer time, since we live in a multi-unit apartment complex. If the cat next door has fleas, we could bring home some "visitors" by walking in the hallway....

So, with that being said, I have just ordered some from petguys.com. The price is just amazing, half of that from the vet....

I guess my next challenge would be how to apply Advantage. There are a few posts here regarding people having problem applying Advantage. Hopefully that won't happen to me.... keep my fingers and paws crossed.

thank you all, once again. Jean

I also use Advantage and have not had a flea problem since. I live in San Diego and it never really gets cold enough to kill the fleas. We basically have fleas all year round! I only order from petguys. They have great prices on everything!

Wow I checked out that petguys.com and the prices for advantage is unbelievable!! Lowest I have ever seen. Wonder why its so low.

I get mine from Pets Megastore in Australia. The price is reasonable too. I do what Hissy recommends by using the Extra Large Dog kind and splitting it up between my four animals. One tube of the X Large dog Advantage will treat all of my animals (3 cats and one medium sized dog). I said a ton of money by doing this! It does take more work, but it is worth it. I got a 1 cc/ml syringe (you'll want one that has a removable needle) from my local Pharmacy. Then I got a little plastic cup (I actually use a Pharmacy ointment jar) and squirt the contents in that cup. Then I use masking tape and mark the syringe with the right dose. Then I fill up the syringe, remove the needle and apply to the cat/dog. It's pretty easy!
BTW, heres a link to Pets Megastore: http://www.pets-megastore.com.au/r2d...=23&ParentID=3

mowguai

I have two indoor cats and I use Advantage. The secret to hassle free application of flea treatments is to make the whole experience positive. I offer my two treats after applying it. And overall it's been ok. It's only Russell who decides to make a fuss now and then.

And about Advantage prices, I've been able to get it at the vet's at about the same price as the prices quoted by Pets Megastore. I'm surprised vets in USA mark up prices so much so that owners find other places to buy the product. Just doesn't make sense.

Thanks for the tip.

Ok...this isn't to do with flea control....but I have to ask....

Are the names of your cats in Cantonese??? I speak Cantonese and each time I read the names I get Cantonese words. And good ones I assure you.

a_loveless_gem, sharp observation!!!
Names of my cats are indeed in Chinese. These characters do sound alike in either Mandarin or Cantonese though. So, your guessing was right on the mark.

"GuaiGuai" means "good and obedient." His original name was actually "P.P.", since his first owner's name was "Peter." But, "P.P." sounds like the word "nauty" in Mandarin, and he is indeed a very active boy cat. He scratched up all furnitures when living at my parents' house. So my mom named him "GuaiGuai" instead.

"MowMow" means "kitty." My husband is her first and only owner. My hubby is quite a lazy person when it comes to naming a pet. So, he took the easy way. Since "Mow" in Chinese means "cat," he just called her "MowMow".....

There you go! The story behind my cats' name, if anyone is interested.